Back bending

Kapotasana, June 2021

I do so many additional exercises that I forget sometimes the pose for which I’m doing all the stretching. Every back bending asana is a bit different. They have also much in common. They stretch the hip flexor. The shoulders get stretched. The entire body shall lengthened. This can be done with the breath and the muscles. It’s important to create room. The bow shall not be compressed, but wide and relaxed.

It’s better to bow backwards correctly than to force the body to reach the feet with the hands. Good to know the goal, but during the practice I aim for a correct movement. This helps to prevent injuries as well.

To get out of an asana is another challenge. Strong legs are required, strong bandhas, too.

Stretching can be done more than once a day. It’s even supportive to add additional training. Not always I’ve the energy to add another yoga or stretching session, but sometimes. It can make a difference.

To practice once a day is absolutely perfect.

This morning I woke up at 5 am. I also got up and enjoyed the early morning hour. Early I was on my mat. I remembered the two years in my life when I started my practice every day at 6 am. This felt wonderful. I want to get back to an early practice. This would give me a lot of time for other necessary activities. This would mean less stress.

We all have to manage our time. It seems to slip through the fingers. If one wants to achieve anything it’s good advice to monitor where the time goes. There are many distractions these days.

I was so joyful that I was so early on the mat. I hit a wall today. I felt stiff, weak. I tried to find out my boundaries for today. I breathed deeply. It’s nonsense to project the past into the future. Yesterday was good, today I practiced slowly and modest. I’m curious how I’ll feel tomorrow.

Keep practicing. This is what counts more than the performance.

Passive stretching - noodle pose

Back bending, passive stretching, June 2021

Rather regularly I practice along with the videos created by Lucas / Yogabody. His stretching method is called gravity training. I think it’s rather effective. The shoulder exercises improved my back bending almost immediately.

The gravity training that I had bought has 5 videos, each has up to 3 poses. The first video focuses on the hamstrings. The next video focuses on the hips, the shoulders. follow Then the back is the focus. The last video focuses on wrists and twists.

What makes a difference is the holding time of the asana. The above pose, that Lucas named ‘noddle pose’ is held for 5 minutes. At the end of this time my feet and my hands reach the floor. No strength is needed in that position. The body can relax, which is important for stretching.

Lucas mentions it in the video, but I also feel it that muscles get stretched I had no clue they existed.

I practice the gravity exercises not during my regular morning practice. I don’t want to move furniture when I practice. The gravity training is a very effective preparation for the morning practice when performed in the evening before.

Every single back bending is a tiny step forward. Every single back bending makes this movement a tiny bit more comfortable. Tiny steps count.

To get out of this pose feels unpleasing. I move towards the feet, then I sit on the first step. Slowly I come up with the upper body, like I come up from urdhva dhanurasana.

It’s summer here and it’s rather warm. People start complaining already. I love it. The heat is a huge support.

I’m thankful for every single practice. The challenging practices are as precious as the easy ones. All practices are opportunities to get to know oneself. They are opportunities to learn. Sometimes it’s the best pastime we can do.

Urdhva dhanurasana - a detailed approach

Urdhva dhanurasana, June 2021

This is how my urdhva ddhanurasana looks these days. It’s visible that I worked on back bending.

My understanding about back bending deepened. It allowed me to work with different body parts separately.

• The leg muscles need to be strong in order to come out of the pose. Equally important is to stretch them.

• Most of us have a sedentary life. Many Ashtanga practitioners practice primary for years these days. The hip flexor is shortened therefore. This makes back bending difficult. To stretch the hip flexor takes time, it comes with discomfort. Yet finally flexibility can improve. In order to stretch the hip flexors I add exercises during my practice. I work on the splits every day as well.

• The entire body can get lengthened if one hangs over a high chair so that feet and hands are in the air. One can also hang at a bar.

• To stretch the shoulders and upper body made a huge difference for my back bending ablilities.

• The arms need to be strong in order to lift up the body. Isolated strength training can be done.

• It’s also important to get into the pose correctly.

• Deep breathing supports the movement.

A goal is to feel good when performing an asana. To stretch and to work on strength comes with discomfort. Otherwise nothing happens. Yet finally an asana can bring joy. It can be possible to relax in an awkward looking position. Sometimes I reach this status, sometimes not. Often an asana feels better at the second and third attempt. Not to give up too early can be rewarding.

My yoga week has started. The first surya namaskars is always a bit stiff, but soon the body woke up.

Explore your possibilities.

Life is an experiment. Be courageous.

Rest day

Savasana, June 2021

Saturday is a day without Ashtanga Yoga. It’s a rest day. This gives the opportunity to reflect on the last week. It gives the opportunity to shovel away all the other duties and tasks that I’ve postponed. This will allow me to start the yoga week tomorrow without a long to do list in mind.

I’ll also use this weekend to discard things that I don’t need anymore. It is said that in the Western world most people have more than 10.000 things. This is too much.

Don’t accumulate unnecessary possessions. This is a very good hint. We need much less than we think. Less things equals a more relaxed life. Less things means less chores. Less things means more time and time is precious.

For those who are bored without a yoga practice I’d like to recommend a YouTube channel created by an Indian yogi:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXmoD51IIiop8k0V1EgN9PA/videos

Be inspired.

Friday means primary for Ashtangis

Paschimottanasana, June 2021

Friday is the last practice of the yoga week. It’s dedicated to primary. The asanas are mainly forward bending asanas. The vinyasa are very challenging.

I’m not yet there where was 4 years ago, when I injured my back. My core muscles are too weak. arm muscles and hip flexors perhaps, too. There is a lot of work to do. I have ideas, so I don’t feel stuck.

Whenever I see a yogini performing advanced asana, I know that this yogini has learned to be disciplined. It’s never only about the body and the asana. The mind is involved as well. Most yogini who are able to perform advanced asanas have learned how important it is to keep practicing on a daily basis.

I also know that frustration is part of the journey. For me this is true. To realize that the yoga journey has a lot of set backs, injuries included, can be frustrating. As a yogini we learn to handle these feelings. We learn to accept that positive and negative emotions are part of the game. It’s nothing to fight, but to observe.

Jumping through (forwards and backwards) is almost lost. But I have ideas. A month ago or so I bought a handstand training. Perhaps this is the solution. Might be that after the training I’m able to do a press handstand, but I won’t be able to jump through without touching the floor. This would be so funny, that I’m entertained already now.

My dear readers, please enjoy that my blog is advertising free. I don’t see my readers as potential buyers, but as yoga practitioners. We all need spaces that allow us to relax.

Enjoy the week-end.

On Sunday the next yoga week begins. Till then enjoy what is.

My plan is to update this blog after lunch, before napping. This might allow to write more often.

Thank you to those who write to me that they miss my blog posts. It’s very much appreciated.

Rely on yourself

Laghu vajrasana, June 2021

Lately I thought that I want to being able to rely on myself.

That is when I plan to practice in the morning I also want to practice, because I’m a person I can rely on. Thinking about me that way is a huge motivation to step on the mat every morning. I’m indeed a reliable person. This is my self-image, I think that others see me the same way. I keep appointments, I’m also on time. Appointments with myself are equally important.

I want to practice and therefore I also practice.

A daily practice is a key for progress. Injuries can be avoided. Doing the right actions might be evenly important, yet without a daily practice nothing can happen at all.

Not always I get up very early. Yesterday night we watched soccer. I got to bed around midnight and didn’t wake up in the early morning. Yet I practiced before breakfast.

Another trick is that I lowered my expectations. I avoid the pitfall wanting too much. I have a habit tracker. It’s set for 90 minutes not longer. Today I practiced much longer, yesterday, too, but I don’t track it. I don’t want to put unnecessary pressure on myself. 90 minutes yoga practice are a good orientation, a nice doable plan.

If 90 minutes are too long, it’s possible to limit the time to 30 minutes.

It’s summer, it’s hot, I don’t want to miss a single practice. To start is the most important step. I’m a reliable person and so I practice.

Perhaps this positive view on yourself might help those who struggle with a daily practice, too.

Focus is back bending these days. The more I practice back bending the easier it gets. Technical posts will come.

Not every day I make progress, yet when I look at the picture I realize that my body has integrated some movements.

Daily practice

Sirsasana, June 2021

It’s almost 10 pm here and I think that I don’t want to neglect my website.

It’s summer in Germany and it’s rather hot. The body is flexible even in the morning. I start sweating again, when I practice.

Whatever we want to learn, to practice daily is what brings success. Not only, but without a practice nothing happens. The opposite is the case. Skills get lost. The body becomes weak and stiff rather quickly when we are inactive.

For me best time to practice is in the morning. I prepare a cup of coffee for myself at first when I get up, then I write my journal. Next comes my yoga practice.

I lowered the expectations. I set a timer for 90 minutes and not 2 hours. Often 90 minutes are not enough for all the exercises I want to do, but I realized that it created stress to aim for 2 hours or more.

I use an App called habits. At the end of a week I can see the fruit of my work. The calendar fills with marked days. It’s somehow rewarding. The days of the practices are counted. It says nothing about the quality of the practice. Yet to show up is the first important step.

Taking pictures interrupts my practice. This is why my blog is neglected. To lower the expectations might be useful here, too.

The above picture is taken in the evening. Days are long. I could use day light at 6 pm.

My life is better when I practice. This is why I practice.

Sirsasana:

I work on lifting up the head from the ground.

And I want to expand the time in that position.

Keep practicing.

Creating time and space for my Ashtanga practice

Kurmasana, 2031

Today is Friday. The Ashtanga yoga practitioner focus on primary. So did I this morning.

I’m by far not where I used to be a few years back. I’m still weak. Not all vinyasa are possible. I don’t care that much.

Important is:

1. To practice on a daily basis

2. To practice in a correct and effective way

Point 1 is challenging.

Point 2 is even more challenging, because what is correct and what is effective is not always clear. I learned a lot in the last years.

In order to stretch one must hold a position longer than 5 breaths. There are also dynamic exercises that are very useful. Stretching can be done twice a day or even more often. A short stretching sequence in the evening can help to fall asleep fast.

When doing strength training the body needs time to recover.

Exploring what other active people do can open eyes. So much knowledge is available these days. Gymnastics, dancer, body weight trainer are learning constantly as well.

In the meantime more and more yogini explore the asana in great detail.

When I started with Asthanga yoga more than a decade ago I learned that Ashtanga yoga focus on the flow, Iyengar yoga focus on the correct performance of the asanas. Yet what is done on a daily basis needs to be done correctly. This avoids injuries and pain. Nobody wants to exercise ineffectively either.

Yoga is time consuming, Time is spent very well, yet sometimes I felt overwhelmed because so much other activities were on my to-do lists, too. My solution for the last months was to discard everything that doesn’t serve the goal to have enough time for what is important to me. This my yoga practice.

I decided to give up knitting and baking. I went through all my social media accounts. It’s too time consuming to feed these greedy pages like Instagram and LInkedIn and Facebook and twitter….. you name it. I prefer to feed my blog. To feed 4 more pages makes me crazy. My blog on Squarespace is a perfect way to reflect on my practice. It’s a great place to document my asana progress and challenges. The rest can go. I give minimum attention to these socials these days. It’s better for my well being to stroll around, to cook something healthy or to read a book.

Yogis live a simple life.

I hope that my progress in having less will allow me to feed my blog more regularly.

Thank you for reading.

Core strength - plank pose

Chaturanga dandasana, March 2021

Plank pose: The body is supposed to be straight.

From plank pose one can exercise a lot of variations. They have all the purpose to make the body stronger. One can lift one arm or one leg or the right arm and the lift leg and so on. To stay in that position for one minute can be challenging as well.

It’s a great arm exercise when lowering slowly.

Important is to engage the entire body.

One can shift the weight of the body from one hand to the other.

I like that it’s easy to integrate some variations of this position when doing the sun salutations.

The core and the back must be seen together. Shalabhasana gives the opportunity to work on back strength.

All core strength exercises are preparations for the jumping back and forward vinyasa.

My experience is that it’s better to exercise a few core strength exercises that one can integrate in a practice than to aim for another strength practice. Repetition is a key here. Repeat the poses and movements that you like. After a while one can alter the exercises.

Keep practicing.

Ashtanga - jumping back

March is the vinyasa month.

Yesterday I watched a lot of YouTube videos on yoga and also on asanas and vinyasa.

I started with an interview with yogi Swenson, who sat years on my sofa in my practice room via his great book. He’s a yoga teacher and has decades of experience with students. He described the journey of yoga how many experience it: First the learning curve goes up. Then comes a plateau. The plateau might last rather long. It’s when students often stop practicing. After this plateau it gets worse for so many. A setback is experienced. And here I am, but I don’t give up. Since this back injury years! ago I’m not yet where I've been. I’m so much weaker. I lost many asanas and vinyasa. I’m relaxed and keep practicing. The yoga practice per se is so fulfilling no matter how advanced or modest my practice is on a given day.

When I write this blog I don’t come from a situation of I know it all. I am a modest student. I’m looking for the next tiny step.

And here it is. The first step when jumping backwards is to lift up. I use blocks, because my core is not strong enough to lift the body without this useful height of the blocks. .

I also watched a Youtube video by David Garrigues. He got a question from a student. She wrote that she was working on jumping back for 10 years now and she was still not able to do it. She asked if she should give up?

David’s answer was very motivating. If you like to learn a fancy movement give it up. Yet the goal is not that fancy movement, it is to get stronger. Strength is necessary for so many asanas in the series. Strength is so important in general. His recommendation was to lift up and to hold the position as long as possible. Blocks can be used. It helps enormously. To give up on the hidden goal of this crazy movement is not an option.

This morning I practice primary and I lifted myself up between asanas and between sides. It’s so easy to omit this strength exercise. Yet then nothing moves.

When I hear that someone worked on a pose or a movement for 10 years without success I know that the method was not effective. It’s huge tabu in the Ashtanga community. Just doing it again and again might not bring the wished success. One must exercise correctly. The Ashtanga community is huge and in the meantime the asanas are broken down into tiny digestible pieces. There are teacher who share their knowledge on how to learn something correctly. A lot has changed in the meanwhile, yet there is still a lack of information.

One must pick oneself up where one is. So let’s lift up the ‘heavy’ body and let’s count how long one can stay there.

Transitions

March 2020

I don’t know how I shall call this asana on the picture. It is an in-between position. There is an overlooked position that I wanted to try. I also avoid it, because it’s scary. It’s lifting the head when in sirsasana. Sirsasana is part of the closing sequence. It’s recommended to stay minimum 25 breaths in that inversion. Yet there is also a variation that one shall exercise. It is to lift the head, the chin moves to the chest.

Because I was so scary I wanted to put one foot at least at the wall. Therefore my head obviously moved in the other direction than I had intended. I bent backwards. I totally lost my straight posture. One of the reason is surely a lack of core strength. All transitions need strength. This is the topic of this month. So from tomorrow on I’ll add some strength exercises in my practice again.

Without strong arms, a strong core, strong muscles in general, transitions become difficult if not impossible.

It’s dark here already, too dark to take another picture.

To lift the head and to move the chin to the chest when in sirsasana is a position I’ll work on. I think it helps to learn pincha mayursana.

A new month, new energy

Urdhva mukha paschimottanasana, Feb 2021

It’s March. February somehow went by so fast, that I missed to blog. Here I am again. The focus of this month is the Vinyasa.

When we speak of the vinyasa count in Ashtanga yoga, we count the number of breath that are required from a starting position to an end end position.

The above asana ‘urdhva mukha paschimottanasana’ has 16 vinyasa according to the book ‘Ashtanga yoga’ by Patthabi Jois. It assumes that the student starts from a standing position and returns to that position.

In a daily practice adho mukha svanasana (or down dog position) is the starting point.

When yogis talk about vinyasa they usually refer to a difficult transition like jumping forward or jumping backward. Yet there are much more transitions than the jumping. Every asana is connected with the next position or the next asana.

There are challenging vinyasa and easier ones. Sometimes it can make a huge difference how a yogi moves into an asana. It can make an asana possible or impossible.

Vinyasa is part of the Ashtanga yoga practice.

Other yoga styles have awesome combinations of asanas as well. Yet the vinyasa are not really a focus. In Ashtanga yoga the vinyasa are a focus. They are an invitation to work on strength. The vinyasa system makes the Ashtanga yoga practice rather dynamic and exhausting.

So let’s start this month with fresh energy.

Thank you for reading

The pelvis, the femur and the abdomen

Marichyasana B, left side, Dec 2020

Yesterday I had time to go through my anatomy books. One of the best is ‘Functional Anatomy of Yoga’ * by David Keil. Davis is a practitioner of yoga himself and he has profound knowledge of anatomy. I read the part about forward bending.

I think it can help to understand that what we call hips is the pelvic and the femur. This is the joint we move when we bend forward. That is if we move forward from the hips. It’s usually not recommended to bow the back to stretch forward in order to reach the toes with the hands in paschimottanasana for instance. With a rounded back the hip joint remains unmoved, yet the goal is to enlarge the movement of the hips. Another gaol is to stretch the hamstrings and further muscles that are involved.

It’s worth to have a look of the pelvic and femur. Many pictures can be found online. All pictures show that the hip joint allows to move the leg in all possible directions. I dare to say that ninety percent of the skeletons walking around on this globe are able to put the leg behind the head. Most of us have the potential to do this. Most of us only don’t try it.

Around the bones are the muscles. They might be strong and not stretched at all. That’s the work we yogis do. We stretch the tight muscles. and enlarge the movement of the joints.

David Keil also wrote that it makes not so much sense to engage the abdomen when bending forward because this causes that the back will create a curve. The goal is to keep the back almost straight. I always thought that I engage the abdomen to get excess body fat out of the way. But, no. Today I experimented. Engaging the pelvis floor has no influence on the back, yet engaging the abdomen has. It is counterproductive to what one wants in forward bending asanas.

David Keil’s book is an excellent reference.

Knowing the functioning of our body, our joints and muscles can be useful. It can build confidence. Knowing that the ‘hips’ allow to put the leg behind the head for most people alters the view on those asanas. The asanas are no more considered as extreme. These movements are within our possibilities. We must only exercise them.

*This site contains affiliate links which earn a fee per purchase.

Forward bending asanas from easy to advanced

Baby pose is a very relaxing forward bending asana. It’s accessible for all of us, perhaps not at once. This easy forward bending asana can serve as a counter pose after intensive back bending. To put the arms next to the body makes this asana even more relaxing. With closed eyes and deep breathing also the mind relaxes.

All leg behind head poses are forward bending asanas. It can take decades to get there. These poses require stretched legs and a stretched back. Yet the hip flexibility is evenly important, too. To enlarge the hip flexibility is a further challenge. Many forward bending asanas have more than one challenge. They can have a balancing challenge in addition or they can be combined with an inversion. Stretching and opening the hips require time. We learn to become patient. There are exercises that prepare such asanas like supta kurmasana. I’ll write about it in posts to come.

Being able to bend forward is also a preparation for handstand. It’s good exercise for the vinyasa like floating forwards and backwards. In the above picture I shift my weight to the hands. I hope that one day my feet will leave the ground…Working on a stronger core could be a next step…….All these possibilities are a huge motivation to work on something that ‘boring’ like forward bending. :)

Yesterday I finished a page on this blog. It shows all the asanas of primary Ashtanga Yoga. Primary has mainly forward bending asanas. When one forward asana improves all the others profit from this progress as well. Applying a scientifically approved stretching technique can speed up the progress. To hold an asana longer than only five breaths, but up to five minutes can speed up the progress. Stretching can be done twice a day. To stretch only is not recommended. Strength training balances stretching. Holding an asana longer can be easily integrated in the morning practice. It interrupts the flow. I differentiate between learning sessions and performing sessions.

Today is Friday and the Ashtanga yogis practice primary. So did I. The vinyasa are the challenge these days. I got too weak. This is why next month I like to focus on the vinyasa…….

How do the masters do it?

Sputa hasta padangusthasana, January 2021

To be a student of yoga and the same time the own teacher can be a challenge. It’s not possible to see oneself from the outside. Picture allow this and it’s worth using this tool. Often one can realize rather fast what needs to get improved. Some tinier things like thumbs who point in the air can be corrected at once. One can discover next steps to improve a pose.

By chance I flipped through the book by B.K.S. Iyengar yesterday. I saw him performing supta hasta padangusthasana. Wow. I know that this pose is challenging. I realized that I avoid the pose.

1. I obviously tend to move my elbow away from the body. This is something that I could correct easily.

2. Both legs are stretched. Als the arm that lies on the thigh is stretched. This gives body tension.

3. When taking care of these things it becomes suddenly a challenge to lift up the body. I couldn’t reach the shin with my chin anymore. My abdomen are too weak. This pose strengthens the abdomen.

The posture on the picture looks so much better than my first attempts.

It’s a very effective method to take pictures of asanas. It goes a step further if one compares these pictures with the asanas of the masters.

As an autodidact or home practitioner one must learn how to learn.

A daily practice is only the beginning…….

Doubts

Forward bending exercise, January 2021

Does this all make sense?

Is it worth doing it?

These thoughts are doubts. Doubts are obstacles. When creating a plan, doubts might be useful. Yet when the planning phase is finished, doubts are no more useful. They weaken and sabotage the plan.

My plan is to hold one forward bending asana for 5 minutes during my morning practice and I want to hold one forward bending asana for 5 minutes in the evening during a second yoga session. It’s a modest session with pranayama and relaxing. It’s to cool down and to finish the day.

What is a forward bending asana?

Not always this is crystal clear. Whenever the upper body gets closer to the thighs it’s a forward bending asana. Often a position is a combination of forward bending, balancing and twist. Only back bending and forward bending at the same time is not possible. The above asana is a clear forward bending asanas. There is no balancing part. The body is not twisting. Gravity supports the movement. Yet I also use the my arms to take my stretched legs closer to the body.

Again my question? Does this make sense? Especially when practicing alone the question might come up more often than in a yoga class, when a teacher is recommending an exercise. Teacher might be wrong, too.

How to handle doubts?

Experiment for a limited time. Doubts also come up because we don’t see progress at once. Yet stretching needs time. Perhaps progress is not visible at all after a view sessions, but a pose feels much better and familiar. Perhaps one could manage to breathe deeper than before. This is not visible, yet it’s progress.

Nevertheless it might be that progress is visible. Before and after pictures help to build confidence. They also motivate and can give hints for the next steps.

Confidence cures doubts. Firstly one gives a new method a leap of faith. After a while one can check if it was worth it. If yes, one usually becomes more confident for projects to come.

The method in question?

Hold asanas longer than only 5 breaths how we usually do it in Ashtanga Yoga. I want to hold asanas for as long as 5 minutes. Perhaps this cannot be done at once. To start with a holding time of 1 minute is perfect. Injuries are to be avoided. From here it’s possible to lengthen the holding time. I use an interval timer. After every minute I hear a sound. This structure helps to stay in a pose for five minutes, because it’s rather five times one minute than five minutes.

I’m sure that the method makes sense. It’s tested. It’s rather scientifically proved. Now I add my personal experience. I learn how to learn.

I’ll show other forward bending asanas that make sense to hold longer………

Do it every single day.

First practice - primary

Paschimottanasana, Dez 2020

Yesterday I prepared today’s practice with gravity training. This morning I stepped on the mat to practice primary. I had practiced during the holidays yet not every day. This morning I realized that we have already the 4th of January 2021. Many yoga challenges have started already. Diligent yogis have practiced already minimum three times. This makes a difference. Four practices is much more than one practice. Even worse, I felt behind. Kino offered a core challenge, cyogalife created a new demanding January challenge that started with handstand. There is Wednesdaywheel, Thursdayswesplit. I’ve still a handstand workshop in my inbox. Mentally I cancelled everything.

My topic in January is forward bending. This can be very challenging.

Forward bending asanas are part of all four Ashtanga Yoga series.

So why should we exercise to bend forward?

No other movement is so part of our daily life than forward bending. When we want to pick up something from the floor, we bend forward. When we tie our shoes we bend forward. It’s possible to avoid the stretch. I know people who sit on a chair when they put on their shoes. Over time this movement becomes more and more difficult till some of us will need help to put on their shoes. Many people gain weight which makes it even more difficult to bend forward. This is the sad truth.

My mother in law is 96 years old. In summer time she works in the garden every day. She bends forward with stretched legs to weed. At her advanced age she is able to put on her shoes, of course. We needn’t get stiff only because we age. Exercise is necessary. Exercising forward bending asanas will allow to stay independent.

This is huge. To stay independent when stretching and exercising. What is this bit of stretching discomfort in comparison?

Everything gets easier when slim and well-nourished.

To eat well and not too much makes a difference as well. Holidays are over. I had a plan and I sticked to it. I didn’t gain weight, which was a relief. Returning to our home we always return to a tiny healthy breakfast with protein (oatmeal and almond milk) and fruit. We still have lockdown due to Corona. I cook every day. I often prepare something raw, a salad for instance. We always eat vegetables.

Start a healthy diet or get back to your healthy routine. This is a good start of the year, whenever this is. I needed three days to be back on the wagon.

Nutruition and yoga (and exercising in general) belong together. Unhealthy food or beverages can sabotage progress.

Forward bending is the basis of many asanas to come. Also those who want to learn press handstand must be able to fold forward deeply.

Stretching takes time, so why not starting with forward bending?

First steps:

• Clear the why?

• Reflect on your nutrition and eat healthy and not too much.

• Make a plan. Daily exercising is recommended.

I wish my readers and yogini a happy and intensive new year 2021. Let’s start.

Plans for this blog

I’ve plans for this blog:

• In January I’d like to focus on forward bending asanas.

• In February the vinyasa shall be the focus. When practicing Ashtanga the connection between the asanas are an important topic. And they are challenging.

• In March urdhva dhanurasana - back bending shall be the focus.

If you’ve ideas or wishes for months to come, please let me know.

How to learn asanas and movements is always a topic. The correct method helps to avoid injuries. The method can help to speed up a process or it can slow down a process.

Headstand is always a good example: If taught correctly with an approved method it can be learned in 30 minutes. On the other hand I know people who are struggling for years with this asana and are convinced that they’ll never learn this classic inversion.

Forward bending asanas stretch the entire body. Stretching can be done effectively.

The first Ashtanga yoga series focuses on forward bending asanas. I think t’s a good start.

It’s the time between the years, how we call the time between Christmas and New Year. Many people have vacation. It’s lock down due to Covid-19. I walk around a lot. The low temperatures are refreshing.

Plans for 2021

Christmas 2020

Many of us start planning the year 2020. Many make resolutions. To lose weight is a favorite resolution in societies where 50 % of the population is overweight.

My resolutions circle around my main interests: yoga and photography. Projects are already announced by people on the Internet (Facebook, Instagram).

I realize already that it’s easy to dream and that it is a challenge to stick to the resolutions.

Lately I found a book with a provocative title: Average sucks. The author recommends to find out one’s average first. An example: If the yoga practice frequency is three times a week, it makes sense to pick oneself up there. It’s very likely to fail if a person plans to practice every day twice, seven days a week. This is overambitious. It’s a dream and often not realistic. To add one more weekly practice is already progress. After a month another practice can be added. It’s a realistic plan.

There are still seven days till 2021. There is still a lot of time to make plans. I like to begin the New Years with new plans. It is as if the tanks are filled with energy. I’m filled with the idea of ‘further’. Further can mean a lot. It’s different for everybody. My plans are not yet on paper. I’m looking forward to planning the next year. I stay open for surprises. I try to be realistic. Tiny steps in the wished direction is better than dreaming big and staying lazy.

Stay realistic.

Becoming minimalist

Summer 2020

The ad found me on Facebook. Perhaps it was also the other way round. A workshop by Joshua Becker * was in my stream. It had the title ‘becoming minimalist’ and should last 12 weeks. I enrolled and didn’t regret it. The course had a dynamic that I hadn’t expected. It became one of my highlights in the Covid-10 year 2020.

What grows slowly gets easily overlooked. I don’t see myself as a hoarder but very soon after this course has started I realized that I had too many things. The course was different than books with the same title. It started with the question why we enrolled for the course. It’s often that people want to get away from being overwhelmed, away from buying things twice because the searched thing is anywhere. Some want to get out of consumer debts.

There are often also positive reasons. Some want to spend more times with their kids. Some want to live in a more relaxed house without all the stuff.

I sometimes skipped the yoga practice because I had so much to do. Soon I realized that all these things that I have keep me from practicing yoga. Every tiny thing that one has needs attention. I started to declutter like a wild one. Many things I could donate. Soon the volunteers knew me at Oxfam. To declutter exhausted me. The sessions lasted much longer than I thought. Very soon I wondered: Why did I buy this and this and this? I found answers for myself. I came to the conclusion that I need so much less. I made the decision to give up knitting. I wont’t become a baker anymore. All these baking tools found another kitchen. I love to cook. It’s enough and already time-consuming. I don’t want to get skilled in baking cakes. I don’t read books twice, so I could let go of many books as well. Every home is different. To declutter forces to focus on what’s important.

There are different levels of minimalism. It might start with things. Soon pictures, papers come into mind. One might also discover habits that one can give up. Do we still need CDs?

It was planned to work intensively within this time frame of 12 weeks. To see an end gave me momentum. When the last day arrived I knew that I had discarded a lot, but there is still a lot to do. Staying decluttered is a process. To take care that the sum of things doesn’t increase again can be a tough job already. Yet I want to have less things and more time.

Summer was almost over and the herbs had to go as well. See picture. I wanted to declutter every day. I did it.

If I wasn’t at home for such long periods due to the lock down I would have overlooked all that stuff. From time to time I would have complained that I have so much to do. But I would have also wondered why this is so. Clutter stole my time.

I’m in for a second round in 2021.

There is still potential.

Stay cool, stay curious, stay creative.

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